Florida's New PIP Law: A Travesty of Justice

By
Jimmy Fasig
|January 08, 2013

Florida’s new personal injury protection law has now taken
effect. Florida’s Gov. Rick Scott was a big proponent of the law which
substantially reduces the amount of benefits people are entitled to if they
become automobile accident victims. The governor promoted the new PIP law as a
method of eliminating the fraud which, according to the Governor, was causing
Florida taxpayers to pay unreasonably high insurance premiums.

As a result of the new law, Florida drivers who would
previously have been entitled to $10,000 in personal injury protection benefits
to cover medical bills and lost wages as a result of a motor vehicle accident
will now be entitled to zero dollars in personal injury protection benefits if
they don’t seek medical treatment within 14 days from the date of
the accident.
For those people whose injuries do not manifest themselves within 14 days from
the date of the accident, or for anybody who procrastinates seeking medical
treatment for 14 days, there will be no PIP benefits available, despite the
fact that these folks will continue to pay their insurance premiums. This
results in up to a $10,000 windfall for the insurance company with no benefit
to the consumer.

Likewise, for accident victims who sustain non-emergency
type injuries as a result of a motor vehicle accident, their benefits will be
cut by 75%, or $7500. In other words, they will only be entitled to $2500 worth
(as opposed to $10,000 worth) of medical and lost wage benefits, regardless of
the amount of their medical bills. For example consider a person who sustains
an injury that is determined to be a non-emergency medical condition. If this
person’s Injuries require physical therapy, injections, pain medication, or
other type of medical treatment that is considered non-emergency medical
treatment, his benefits will cut off at $2500. Again, this will save the
insurance company up to $7500 which the company otherwise would have had to
pay, and will leave the consumer strapped with up to $7500 worth of out-of-pocket
medical bills.

Who determines whether somebody’s condition is an emergency
medical condition: medical doctors, doctors of osteopathy, and nurse
practitioners. Chiropractors are not allowed to make such a determination. One
of the big problems for consumers, however, will be finding a medical
doctor, doctor
of osteopathy, or nurse practitioner who is willing to see patients whose only
insurance coverage is personal injury protection coverage. Law firms are
already receiving letters from medical doctors stating they are no longer
taking automobile accident victims as patients unless the victims have their
own private health insurance coverage to pay the bills. This might not be a
huge problem in big cities. However, in small towns with only a limited number
of doctors, accident victims will often have nowhere to go to seek medical
treatment. They can go to the emergency room in the nearest city, but if their
vehicle was damaged in the accident that might present a problem. Even cities
as big as Tallahassee have a scarce number of doctors who were willing to see
accident victims before the new PIP law took effect. That number will reduce
substantially as a result of the new PIP law and the uncertainty of the doctor
getting paid.

If an insurance company suspects fraud, under the new PIP
law it has up to 90 days after submission of a claim to pay the bill or deny
it. This is an additional disincentive
for doctors who might otherwise be willing to treat automobile accident
victims.

Additionally the new PIP law states that PIP insurance will
no longer pay for massage therapy services or acupuncture.

What do Florida taxpayers get back in return for
substantially reduced and sometimes eliminated personal injury protection
benefits? Absolutely nothing. There is no evidence that any of the major
insurance companies have reduced their premiums despite the substantial savings
the insurance companies stand to reap as a result of the changed PIP law. The
new law requires insurance companies to either make small concessions on their
premiums or explain why they cannot justify making such concessions. The escape
clause allows insurance companies to charge whatever they want and reap profits
greater than ever.

Our advice to people who are involved in an automobile
accident in 2013 and beyond: Seek medical treatment as soon as possible and
call a lawyer to discuss your rights before making a mistake that could waive
your entitlement to benefits.

The information on this website is for general information purposes only.
Nothing on this site should be taken as legal advice for any individual
case or situation. This information is not intended to create, and receipt
or viewing does not constitute, an attorney-client relationship.